EEL News Service – Issue 2015/05 of 02 April 2015

Dear members of the EEL Network,

We are happy to present this issue of the EEL News Service.

Also, we’d like to point out we are looking for a new INTERN at the T.M.C. Asser Institute in The Hague to help out with this News Service, the website and other activities relating to EU environmental law. For information on this position, please contact via e-mail.

Registration for our 23 April event “Better Regulation in the EU revisited. Improving the European Union for the benefit of business and
citizens” has been closed as the maximum capacity has been reached.

Furthermore, all information about our Asser Summer Programme on
International & European Environmental Law: The Future we Choose (24-28
August 2015), can be found here.

Euobserver Article:France, UK trying to weaken EU air pollution law(27/03/2015)
The problem of air pollution became visible recently in two of Europe’s largest capitals, with London and Paris covered by thick clouds of smog in March. However, while those cities’ mayors have proposed measures to tackle the issue, the governments that reside in the two capitals are attempting to water down stricter EU limits.

Climate Change

UACES Blog Entry:Policy Entrepreneurs: Key Players in Bottom-up Climate Policy (18/03/2015)
“As the top-down, United-Nations driven target setting approach to international climate through the Kyoto Protocol approach has increasingly been called into question, many have begun to highlight the advantage of bottom-up approaches. […]”

EurActiv Article:Biomass’ ‘zero’ ETS rating burns us all (19/03/2015)
We have no idea if the biomass burned actually reduces CO2 emissions, which raises questions about the energy source’s zero rating in the EU’s Emissions Trading System, writes Carlos Calvo Ambel.

EurActiv Article:Natural disaster reduction agreement a ‘disappointment’(23/03/2015)
International negotiations on disaster risk reduction ended on Wednesday 18 March with a disappointing agreement, despite the recent drama in Vanuatu. Some have seen this as a bad omen for this year’s UN climate negotiations.

EurActiv Article:Germany’s CO2 emissions decrease for the first time in 3 years (01/04/2015)
Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks spoke of a trend reversal, as overall greenhouse gas emissions were observed decreasing again for the first time in 3 years. But in the agriculture and transport sectors, the trend is quite the opposite.

Energy

EurActiv Article:Renewable island director: We need the opposite of Energy Union (16/03/2015)
Decentralisation is the key to energy success and development, Søren Hermansen said in an exclusive interview with EurActiv. Instead of focusing on Putin’s gas, the EU should create its own independent energy grid, including the national feed-in tariffs the Energy Union project opposes, he said.

EurActiv Article:Fracking costs outweigh benefits for Germany and Europe, study says (20/03/2015)
For only a ten year supply of energy, fracking in Europe would contaminate drinking water, cause severe environmental damage and create vast industrial landscapes, says a study on fracking, as the German government pushes to legalise the controversial extraction method.

JRC Article:ETRI 2014 – Energy Technology Reference Indicator projections for 2010-2050 (23/03/2015)
The JRC has published the first version of the report: ETRI 2014 – Energy Technology Reference Indicator projections for 2010-2050. The indicators provide a set of techno-economic data to be used for evaluating the European energy system. Together with the Technology Map 2013 (.PDF), it should provide policymakers and other people interested in energy technologies with information about expected future technology developments.

EurActiv Article:Europe trailing behind in global renewables rebound(01/04/2015)
Renewable energy investment across the European Union almost ground to a standstill last year, with less than 1% growth, despite a strong global rebound in financing led by China and the United States, according to figures published on Tuesday 31 March.

EurActiv Article:Smart grids could be Europe’s shale gas, Commission says(02/04/2015)
Smart grids balancing intermittent solar and wind energy with flexible power demand could do for Europe what shale gas has done for the United States, a senior European Union official said on the 1st of April.

Note:For news on Biofuels see section “Nature & Argiculture” below.

Nature & Agriculture

Euobserver Article:EU’s new GMO law leaves questions unanswered(12/03/2015)
A new directive on cultivation of genetically-modified crops (GMOs) in Europe breaks an old deadlock between the European Commission, member states, and producers. But it leaves open political and legal questions.

EurActiv Article:97% of pesticide levels in Europe’s food legal, says EU agency (12/03/2015)
A new report by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has found that more than 97% of foods contain pesticide residue levels that fall within legal limits. Strawberries are the most likely to exceed safe limits, the agency found.

European Voice Article:Phasing in of CAP reforms makes shaky start(26/03/2015)
Filing payment applications on paper instead of submitting them online was probably not what farmers in the United Kingdom had in mind when they requested a simplification of the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).

Waste

EurActiv Article:Ecodesign can drive a circular economy (23/03/3015)
The circular economy has become one of the latest buzzwords in Brussels. The challenge now is to make sure it becomes an operational pillar of the EU’s policymaking, writes Stephane Arditi.

29 – 30 May 2015

Event: 2015 EU-Arctic ConferenceTopic/Title: European Union and the ArcticOrganisation:Dundee University School of Law & K.G. Jensen Centre for the Law of the Sea (JCLOS)Venue: University of Dundee, Dundee, Scotland, UK

25 – 26 June 2015

Event: Inagural workshop of the UACES CRNTopic/Title: European Energy PolicyOrganisation:UACES CRN on the European Energy PolicyVenue: Norwich Business School, University of East Anglia, United Kingdom